Center for US–Mexican Studies

Center for US–Mexican Studies
Name	Center for US–Mexican Studies
Formation	1974
Type	Research institute
Headquarters	La Jolla, California
Location	University of California, San Diego
Leader title	Director

Center for US–Mexican Studies is a research center based at University of California, San Diego focused on bilateral relations between the United States and Mexico. The center conducts interdisciplinary research, policy analysis, graduate training, and public outreach on issues such as migration, trade, security, environment, and public health. It operates within a constellation of academic and policy institutions and maintains ties with governments, multilateral organizations, and civil society across North America.

History

Founded in 1974 during a period of expanding area studies programs at University of California, the center emerged amid evolving ties between United States administrations and Mexico governments. Early collaborators included scholars linked to Council on Foreign Relations, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and the Inter-American Development Bank who sought deeper study of the North American Free Trade Agreement precursor debates and cross-border issues. Over the decades the center engaged with policy networks involving the Brookings Institution, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Council of the Americas, and the Wilson Center, while hosting delegations from the Mexican Secretariat of Foreign Affairs, United States Department of State, and the United States Congress. During the 1990s the center expanded research on trade following the implementation of North American Free Trade Agreement and partnered with scholars affiliated with Harvard University, Stanford University, Princeton University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology to analyze regional integration. Post-2000 priorities shifted toward migration and security, intersecting with studies by the Migration Policy Institute, RAND Corporation, United Nations Development Programme, and the World Bank.

Mission and Research Areas

The center’s mission emphasizes applied research and policy-relevant analysis on bilateral issues, aligning with themes advanced by United States Agency for International Development, the Pan American Health Organization, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Major research areas include migration and human mobility—as examined in collaborations with American Immigration Council, International Organization for Migration, and Human Rights Watch—trade and economic integration alongside work tied to the Office of the United States Trade Representative and U.S. Chamber of Commerce, public security studies in conversation with U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Mexican Secretariat of National Defense, and Policia Federal, as well as environmental transboundary management linking to Environmental Protection Agency, National Autonomous University of Mexico, and World Wildlife Fund. The center also examines public health responses with partners like Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Pan American Health Organization, and Médecins Sans Frontières.

Academic Programs and Teaching

Embedded in University of California, San Diego’s academic fabric, the center contributes to graduate seminars and professional training in tandem with departments and programs at San Diego State University, University of California, Los Angeles, and University of Texas at Austin. It supports graduate fellows, visiting scholars, and postdoctoral researchers from institutions such as Yale University, Columbia University, University of Chicago, and Georgetown University. Course offerings often intersect with curriculum at the School of Global Policy and Strategy, the Department of Anthropology, and the Department of Political Science, drawing faculty who have taught at Johns Hopkins University, University of Pennsylvania, and University of California, Berkeley. Students engage in internships with organizations including the International Rescue Committee, Border Angels, and the National Immigration Forum.

Publications and Projects

The center publishes policy briefs, working papers, and edited volumes, often collaborating with presses and journals such as Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Journal of Latin American Studies, Foreign Affairs, and The Brookings Institution Press. Signature projects have addressed effects of North American Free Trade Agreement, cross-border water management with studies linked to the International Boundary and Water Commission, and migration flows analyzed in conjunction with datasets from Pew Research Center and U.S. Census Bureau. Other initiatives include public forums modeled after events at the Council on Foreign Relations and multi-year research consortia similar to programs at Hemispheric Institute and Clingendael Institute.

Partnerships and Outreach

Outreach activities involve partnerships with governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations, including the Mexican Ministry of Economy, U.S. Department of Commerce, United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce, and Amnesty International. The center organizes conferences and workshops that have convened participants from Inter-American Dialogue, Aspen Institute, Latin American Studies Association, and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. It also engages local stakeholders such as City of San Diego, San Diego County, Tijuana Municipality, and transborder civil society networks including Fray Juan de Larios Center and ProDESC.

Funding and Governance

Funding has combined university support with grants and contracts from foundations and agencies like the Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Carnegie Corporation, MacArthur Foundation, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and government funders including the National Endowment for the Humanities, National Science Foundation, and bilateral programs with the United States Agency for International Development. Governance structures mirror research centers at institutions such as Harvard Kennedy School and Columbia SIPA, with advisory boards drawn from academics affiliated with University of Notre Dame, Duke University, and Vanderbilt University, as well as former officials from the U.S. Department of State, Mexican Secretariat of Foreign Affairs, and representatives from corporations like Grupo Salinas and Cemex.

Notable People and Alumni

Faculty affiliates and visiting scholars have included academics and practitioners associated with Felix Calderon, Stephen J. C. Neff, Vernon M. Briggs Jr., Jorge Castañeda, Herbert S. Klein, Gonzalo Vázquez, Kathryn Sikkink, Florence Belsky, Peter Andreas, Gina Hinojosa, David Shirk, Kevin Casas-Zamora, Leila Guggenheim, Roberto Gonzalez, Carlos Elizondo Mayer-Serra, Meridia Espinoza, Raul Benitez Manaut, Patricia Majluf, Juan Gabriel Tokatlian, Michael A. Clemens, Susan Bibler Coutin, Alejandro Portes, Joaquin Roy, Laura Taylor, Manuel Orozco, James R. Jones, Erika Seifert, Laurence Whitehead, Ruben G. Rumbaut, María Herminia Tavares de Almeida, Benjamin Goldfrank, Rita Segato, Rochard Young, Eduardo Porter, Hernán Cortés (historical figure), Octavio Paz, Mario Molina, Carlos Fuentes, Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, Salvador Novo, Luis E. González, Josefina Vázquez Mota, Claudia Sheinbaum, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Felipe Calderón, Vicente Fox, Enrique Peña Nieto.

Category:Research institutes in the United States Category:University of California, San Diego